The ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 has reached an interesting situation where two teams have qualified for the semi-final. India and South Africa have made it to the next round, and there are four teams in contention for the two available slots.
Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, and Afghanistan are fighting for those two spots. It will be pretty interesting to see which teams end up filling those two spots. Every game from now on is a do-or-die match. With a win against England on Saturday, Australia is in a solid position to qualify.
It has left three teams with eight points each fighting for fourth place. Pakistan and New Zealand are left with one game to play, while Australia and Afghanistan have two games each. However, match no. 39 will see a clash between Australia and Afghanistan at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
It will be the first ODI between these two teams since Australia refused to play a bilateral series against Afghanistan in UAE late March. As a result, Afghan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq took a dig at the Australian team through his Instagram story.
He wrote, “Refusing to play the bilateral series, now it will be interesting to see cricket Australia stand in the World Cup #standards #humanrights or 2 points.” Earlier, the pacer, along with a few Afghan players, showed their disappointment in Australia’s decision and pulled out of the BBL.
The forfeited series was part of the ODI Super League, which has 30 points to grab. However, it didn’t affect either team in the end. Notably, in 2021, a one-off test between the two teams was cancelled after the Taliban attack. Now, these teams will be up against each other on November 7 in Mumbai. It is a big game for both teams in order to qualify for the semi-final.
